The ECR MEPs involved in the final report of the Special Committee on Beating Cancer, Shadow Rapporteur Pietro Fiocchi, and First Committee Vice-Chair and ECR Coordinator Joanna Kopcińska, say they are “broadly satisfied” with the direction taken by Parliament in this report in fighting the scourge of cancer.
“We welcome the report’s focus on the key themes of prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and care. Furthermore, we are pleased with its emphasis on making cancer medicines and treatment more available and affordable,” Mr Fiocchi said.
The report underscores the immense scale of the challenge that lies ahead. Each year, Europe sees an estimated 2.7 million new cancer cases diagnosed and 1.3 million deaths. What is more, a further 100 million Europeans will be diagnosed with cancer before 2050.
Ms Kopcińska commented: “It is important for us that citizens of all EU Member States have equal access to the cancer therapies and the regulatory safeguards needed against the determinants of cancer. There must be no discrimination between richer and poorer countries.”
Nonetheless, the report is not without its limitations. Some elements of the report’s content on prevention measures will require additional refinement during the plenary vote, particularly on new tobacco and alcohol consumption controls and a push for unworkably ambitious air quality standards.
A final vote on the report will be held in the European Parliament Plenary during the February 2022 part-session.
